Technical Field
The present invention relates to a packaging system and corrugated cardboard packaging box with inserts used for shipping goods. Specifically, the invention relates to a set of components used in a corrugated cardboard box that compartmentalize the box into weight bearing compartments, thus allowing for the simultaneous packaging within the box of items having disparate shapes, sizes, and density. This creates a unique ability to ship light and fragile products with heavy products.
Description of Related Art
Retail online purchasing by consumers has exploded over recent years. Consumer goods of all types can now be ordered online and shipped directly to the consumer. The means for shipping such product is typically a corrugated box in which the product ordered is placed, along with dunnage (such as filler paper, plastic bubble wrap, styrofoam pieces, etc.), which is used to protect the product from damage during shipping. Shipping product in this way, in a corrugated box with dunnage, is adequate for most packaging solutions. However, an emerging retail grocery market available through online ordering and delivery to the consumer presents challenges to this standard shipping method. Specifically, consumers have begun to order grocery items online through outlets such as Amazon's PrimePantry™ and Walmart.com.
The model of offering grocery items to a consumer through online sale and shipped delivery poses unique challenges and problems. Many grocery items don't combine well in a single box. Yet, the model for retail online grocery services requires that all items be shipped in as few boxes as possible in order to limit shipping cost. In fact, some models for online grocery shopping limit the consumer to the filling of a single box per order based on the weight and cubic size of the order. Consequently, any packaging used to support this model must provide protection for products of disparate shape, size, weight, and density, as is typical of a grocery order.
For example, a single order from a consumer may include canned goods, various boxes and bottles, various bagged goods such as bread products and flexible pillow bags with crushable contents such as potato chips. The problems faced in this situation can be understood when imaging a box filled with heavy canned goods combined with several pillow bags holding potato chips and tortilla chips. While packing this box, the best protection that can be provided under current practices is to place all the heavier items (the canned goods) at the bottom of the box and the lighter items (the pillow bags) at the top of the box. Some dunnage can be added to provide some extra protection. However, unless the box maintains the same orientation throughout the entire shipping process, the heavier items on the bottom of the box will at some point crush the pillow bags placed at the top of the box. This usually results in rupturing of the bags and crushing of the food product found within the pillow bags.
A prior art alternative to a corrugated box with dunnage involves a corrugated box with a modular product protection system comprising one or more vertical compartmented insert. This compartmented insert is illustrated in FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, and 1F. FIG. 1A shows one embodiment of a compartmented insert in a folded or flat configuration suitable for storage. The insert is typically made from corrugated cardboard. Shown in FIG. 1A is one side of the insert when in the folded configuration. Six panels 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 of the insert can be seen. The top panels 10, 12, 14 are separated from the bottom panels 16, 18, 20 by a cut 62 through on side of the piece. Also shown are folding points 60.
The insert is deployed by first forming the flat insert shown in FIG. 1A into a two-tiered rectangular insert shown in FIG. 1B. The interior panels on the top of the insert 26, 32, 34, as well as an interior divider 22 can now be seen. Also shown is an interior flap 30 which attaches the interior divider 22 to one of the interior side panels 34.
Also shown in FIG. 1B is a folding point 64 about which the upper portion of the now expanded insert comprising the upper panels 10, 12, 14 will be separated from the lower half of the insert comprising the lower panels 16, 18, 20 at the cut line 62. This process is shown in FIG. 1C wherein the upper portion of the insert comprising the upper panels 10, 12, 14 is being rotated away about the fold line 64 from the bottom half of the insert comprising the lower panels 16, 18, 20. Also revealed are additional internal panels 28, 36, 38 and an additional interior divider 24.
FIG. 1D shows the continuation of the action shown in FIG. 1C as the upper half of the compartmented insert is further rotated about the folding line 64 toward a final deployment. Interior panels 26, 28, 32, 34, 36, 38 are again visible along with two interior dividers 22, 24.
The final deployment of the vertical compartmented insert is illustrated in FIG. 1E. It can be seen that what was formerly an upper panel 14 is now in the same horizontal plane as a lower panel 20 and that these two panels 14, 20 abut. The deployed insert is now ready for placement in a box. Two additional panels 40, 42 are now also apparent from the interior of the compartmented insert. It can also be seen that the fold line 64 has now become a ridge 64 made up of one edge of a continuous piece of material consisting of two corrugated cardboard sheets. Further, it can be seen that two of the panels 36, 38 are now panels on an interior divider made up on one of the sheets of corrugated cardboard that forms the strong ridge 64 bisecting the center of the now fully deployed vertical compartmented insert. This deployed compartmented insert, as shown, has four compartments or cells, each cell defined by four interior panels/dividers.
This deployed compartmented insert is of such dimension as to nest in a companion corrugated box 190 such as the one illustrated in FIG. 1F. As is standard of a rectangular-shaped corrugated box 190, the box 190 illustrated in FIG. 1F is show in an open position with two wide flaps 194, and two long flaps 192, which can be used to seal the box 190. The compartmented insert is nested into the corrugated box 190 by placing it through the opening created by folding back the flaps 192, 194. The box 190 has now been transformed from one compartment to four compartments, thus reducing the direct interaction between products placed therein. Extra dunnage can be added as well to provide additional protection.
This prior art solution of a compartmented container using a compartmented insert nested in a corrugated box is an improvement over the prior art method of packaging a corrugated box with product protected by dunnage. However, the prior art usage of a compartmented insert does not provide the flexibility that an open box with dunnage provides in accommodating product of various sizes and shapes.
Consequently, a packaging system using a corrugate cardboard box as the outer shell is needed that provides both separation of product like a compartmented insert system provides as well as the ability to configure the interior of the box to accommodate products with varying shapes and sizes. This packaging solution should allow for quick and simple construction using common components. This packaging solution should provide protection for product within a corrugated cardboard box wherein the product consists of individual items of various sizes, shapes, and density.